Letters from Sri Ramanasramam, by Suri Nagamma

“That is all very well, but am I a pandit? If all this is to
be written, one has to study Bhagavatam, Bharatam and all
that. But what am I to write about? What is there to write
about?” he asked.

“Whatever Bhagavan writes will itself be a matter of
interest,” I replied.

He replied, “You write so many verses. Is that not
enough? If you want, get me Pedda Bala Siksha (popular
children’s primer in Telugu), or Sulakshana Saram. I shall tell
you the ganas, and you may compose yourself.” I said, “I
don’t want to write anything. If Bhagavan writes anything, I
shall read it; otherwise not.” He laughed and kept silent.

I went out and began writing something sitting in front
of the verandah. But you see Bhagavan is full of kindness.

As soon as I left the hall, it seems he composed a venba and
read it out to the devotees. He saw me in the evening as he
was going out, looked at me and said, “Here is another venba
I have just now composed. You may see it.” Overwhelmed
with joy, I looked at it and kept it. Bhagavan translated it
into Tamil and told Muruganar, “Am I well read in Telugu?
That is why I try to avoid writing in Telugu, but she keeps
on asking. I raised several objections but she did not agree.

Therefore I had to write.”
“Bhagavan’s saying is destined to come out in this
manner,” said Muruganar. It was 6 p.m. I came home saying
I would copy it the next day. I went to the Hall next morning
at 8 o’clock. On seeing him, Bhagavan said, “Here is another
composed by me last night. They make five in all. They may
be called ‘Atma Panchakam’! But Sankara has already
composed something under the same name. Let us therefore
call them ‘Ekatma Panchakam’. I have already numbered
the verses. You may verify, and copy them out.”
As instructed, I copied them out. On seeing me do that,
several other devotees also copied them and got them by heart.

This afternoon a lady devotee sang the Ekatma Panchakam in
the Hall. When she sang the third verse, commencing ‘thanalo
thanuvunda’ Bhagavan looked at me and said, “See I gave this
example of the cinema when I was in Virupaksha Cave, even
before cinemas became popular. There were no cinemas in
Sankara’s time. Therefore he gave the example, ‘viswam
darpana drisyamana nagari’. He would not have given that
example if there had been cinemas in his time. We have now
got in the cinema a very easy example to give.”